Wichita eagle., 1887-06-24

dry, barren countay. While waiting there
| heard a man say that Trinidad would
have a boom this year equal to the one
Wichita has had, SO of course l had my
couriosity aroused, and after riding over
| ninety miles of country that was high and
dry, with a very scanty sign Of vegetation,
Aery few cattle or sheep 10 be seen, nothing
but the same dreary landscape until the
mountains begin to loom up, and then the
scene is a little more varied. Cedar trees
get to be quite plenty, although small, and
away in the west the Spanish Peaks could
| be seen covered with snow. We overheard
a woman say they were ninety miles from
us AS we had never been there, we had
no right to dispute her word, for conduc-
tor sang out Trinidad, and | wanted to see
Wichita's rival. Instead Of being located
in fine agricultural country, with every
thing in its favor. found small mining
town with signs of coal on all sides. The
town is broken up into every conceivable
shape, with a few houses that look like
American houses on the west while on the
east side Of the road are Mexican adobe
houses. The whole available land for
town purposes does not exceed twenty
acres, and with the exception Of the small
mountains that come down to the town,
there is no place for a town, and the pros
pect for leveling down those bills are not
very good, so that their boom is not likely
to happen this year.
| Soon after leaving Trinidad we saw the
first pine trees we had seen, and from that
the cedars grew less and the pine trees
more in number, as we were getting up on
the mountains. We stopped at Ration for
dinner, and here as at all the stations we
| find more Mexicans and less Americans.
Mexican adobe houses of one story; Mexi-
can burros and Mexican gardens of an acre
or less; they manage to cultivate by the
help of irrigation, but the Mexicans are
more found of gambling than farming, and
we could see the men at some Of these
towns lying down in the sunshine gamb-
ling, while the women were washing and
doing other work to support these lords of
creation.
After passing through Ration tunnel we
came upon strip of country not as high,
but more rolling, for about thirty miles.
Here we saw Senator Dorsey's enormous
tract of land that he fenced in and exclud
ed others from it until the people took his
fence away and settled it Themselves. 1t is
the general opinion here that Dorsey is in
rather reduced circumstances.
After leaving Springer Station noun
tains began to show themselves in all their
magnitude. The Ration mountains are all
right, having an elevation Of about 5000
feet, but as we strike the main line of the
Rockies we begin to look as the cars go
whirling down some canyon or by the side
of some mountain stream, then around
some spur of a mountain. 80 that we catch
glimpse of the SUBMITS and ask how far
it is to the top, and we find that we are
still going up, and upon arriving at Las
Vegas supper, that we are up 5,39S feet,
and not near the top of the mountain yet.
Las Vagas is town said to contain 10000
inhabitants 1t is divided into the old and
new The old town is strongly Mexican
in buildings, business and people; the new
town is striving to be American, but it is
evident that the Mexican is still there.
While stopping at Las Vagas heavy
shower came up. and it was a continued
rain for four hours. We stopped at quite
a number of stations, but as it was very
dark, we could not tell much about the
country, but We could tell that we were
going onward and upward. Sometimes
we would scarcely move, then with in
creasing speed we would 60 laundering
down some mountain side, while far below
us, hundreds of feet, we could catch sight
of rushing, roaring river as the engine
swung around and threw the light from
her headlight down the valley. Every
thing considered, it was wild, wonderful
ride, one long to be remembered, and al
though we were tired and sleepy, yet We
were sorry when the conductor at midnight
sang out "Glorieta, the place at which we
left the Santr Fe, after ride of $50 miles.
More anon. GEO. A. WHITE.